Taiwan: Chinese Army Preparing Military Exercises Aimed at Taiwan

China is gearing-up for large-scale military wargames aimed at "taking control of the Taiwan Strait", with 18,000 troops and the amphibious landing of a tank brigade

China is gearing-up for large-scale military wargames aimed
at "taking control of the Taiwan Strait", with 18,000 troops and the
amphibious landing of a tank brigade.

The exercises were to take place in June and July on Dongshan
Island in southeastern Fujian province just 150 nautical miles west of Taiwan's
Penghu Island, the New Express Daily said, citing a pro-Beijing Hong Kong newspaper.

China has become increasingly agitated with independence-leaning
Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian, and the report referred to the exercises
as the first-ever aimed at "striving to control the Taiwan Strait."

The 18,000 soldiers will be deployed from the land, navy and
air force of the Nanjing Military Region, where some 500 short-range ballistic
missiles are pointed at Taiwan.

"Sukoi Su-27 fighter jets will be outfitted with KN59M
guided air-to-surface missiles in an effort to maintain control over the Taiwan
Strait and ensure that tank brigades can make a landing and engage in warfare,"
the report said.

Submarines, war ships and a guided missile brigade would also
be involved in the exercises that were to be led by Lieutenant General Huang
Jiang, it said.

Soldiers were deployed on Dongshan Island in mid-May where
tanks and armoured personnel carriers had been practicing amphibious landings
daily on Jinluan beach, it said. It was not clear if the exercises had already
begun.

According to Hong Kong's Apple Daily, the exercises would be
smaller than simliar drills held during the summer of 2001, when some 100,000
soldiers engaged in similar amphibious exercises and mock sea warfare aimed
at sinking an aircraft carrier.

Since the re-election of Chen in March, and especially since
his inaugural address on May 20, the mainland has racheted up the rhetoric on
Taiwan, reiterating its long-standing vow to take the island by force should
Chen move the territory towards formal independence.

Beijing has considered Taiwan part of its territory awaiting
reunification since the end of the civil war in 1949.

Taiwanese defence officials said in April that Taiwan was conducting
its own massive military exercises to evaluate the island's defense capabilities
against the threat of attack from China.

The seven-month drills, codenamed "Han Kuang (Han Glory)
20", are scheduled to end in November and would test the joint operations
of the armed forces.

Taiwan's defense ministry has previously warned of the possibility
of an attack by China unless the island continues to strengthen its defensive
power as a deterrent.

The United States has repeatedly urged China and Taiwan to
refrain from any provocative actions, and it blasted Beijing in a defense department
report last week for developing a variety of "credible military options"
to prevent Taiwan from achieving independence.

China Monday blamed Washington's arms sales for the deteriorating
state of cross-Strait ties.

"Due to the support and connivance of the United States,
Taiwan authorities have gone further down the road toward 'independence' and
the United States is responsible for the current worsening situation across
the Taiwan Straits," the official Xinhua news agency said.

RELATED PUBLICATIONS

MEMBERS

NEWSLETTER

GET THE LATEST ACTIVITIES AND NEWS

The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) is an international, nonviolent and democratic membership organisation. Its Members are indigenous peoples, minorities, unrecognised States and occupied territories that have joined together to defend their political, social and cultural rights, to preserve their environments and to promote their right to self-determination.